No. 21 SDSU at No. 16 Kansas

Site/time: Allen Fieldhouse, Lawrence, Kan./1:38 p.m. PST Sunday

TV/radio: CBS/1090-AM, 105.7-FM

Records: SDSU is 11-1, Kansas is 9-3

Series: The teams have split their only two previous meetings, an 12-point SDSU win in San Diego in 1978 and a 13-point Kansas win in Lawrence the next year. Steve Fisher has faced Kansas once before, an 86-74 win while at Michigan in the final of the Rainbow Classic in Hawaii. Kansas coach Bill Self faced a Fisher-coached team as an assistant at Oklahoma State in 1992, when the Cowboys lost to Michigan’s Fab Five in the Sweet 16.

LAWRENCE, Kan.  FIVE THINGS TO WATCH

1. The numbers game: The Aztecs rank first nationally in field-goal percentage defense (.342) and second in scoring defense (53.3). Kansas is fifth nationally in shooting percentage (.509) and averages 79.4 points; in five games at Allen Fieldhouse they have scored 80, 86, 88, 86 and 93. So what gives? Coach Bill Self’s take: “They’re certainly one of the premier defensive teams in the country. They can score the ball, but they hang their hat on stopping people. I’d be very surprised if it’s a game like Toledo (93-83). I do think they’ll play fast offensively, but they usually make you use some clock defensively because they’re not going to give up a lot of easy shots early on.”

2. The switch is on: SDSU might as well stand for Switching Defense Superbly University. The Aztecs are a long, athletic, versatile bunch that allows them to switch all types of ball screens and dribble handoffs that are so common in today’s offenses, cutting off driving angles while limiting the size mismatches that usually come with switching. “They switch a lot of stuff,” Self said. “I don’t think we’ve gone against somebody who does it quite as good as them. I don’t think we need to play to the mismatches as much as we just need to play – hopefully play to the mismatches naturally rather than forcing them.”

3. Sizing them up: New Mexico lost to Kansas 80-63 three weeks ago in Kansas City, and on paper the bigger Lobos are probably a better match-up than the Aztecs. The Jayhawks start 7-0, 250-pound Cameroonian center Joel Embiid who is projected as a Top 5 draft pick, then bring 6-9, 260-pound Memphis transfer Tarik Black and 6-8, 220-pound Jamari Traylor off the bench. Much of SDSU’s success will depend on how it handles the bulk, which means Skylar Spencer and Josh Davis must stay out of foul trouble. It also means little-used junior post James Johnson, who has more fouls (23) than rebounds (19), could get meaningful minutes. “More than anybody we’ve played to date,” Coach Steve Fisher said, “they have a mandate: Throw the ball inside. When they have that length and size, and lots of them, they can be hard to guard … They present problems.”

4. Maple Jordan: Canadian Andrew Wiggins, the product of an NBA player (Mitchell Wiggins) and an Olympic silver medalist sprinter (Marita Payne-Wiggins), is the most hyped freshman in years. He’s built in the mold of the modern wing, 6-8 with smooth handles and 3-point range. It hard to say he’s lived up to the hype, because that would mean he’s averaging 40 points, 20 rebounds and 10 SportsCenter dunks per game. Still, he’s the Jayhawks’ leading scorer (15.9) while shooting a respectable 47 percent. But like all freshmen, he can be wildly inconsistent – following a 26-point, 11-rebound performance at Florida with a single point in 28 minutes against New Mexico. Which Maple Jordan do the Aztecs get?